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February 17, 2011

Global X FTSE/ASEAN 40 Index ETF Starts Trading

It is the first U.S.-listed ETF to track the performance of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations

Global X Funds launched the Global X FTSE/ASEAN 40 Index ETF on Thursday. It is the fifth ETF introduced by Global X based on a FTSE index and the first U.S.-listed exchange-traded fund to represent the performance of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), according to FTSE.

It trades under the ticker symbol ASEA.

The FTSE/ASEAN 40 Index measures the performance of the 40 largest companies in the broader FTSE/ASEAN Index, which tracks the performance of large- and mid- cap companies from Indonesia, the Philippines, Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand.

As of February 11, 2011, the index break down was: Singapore (41.19%), Malaysia (32.82%), Indonesia (14.77%), Thailand (10.58%), and the Philippines (0.61%), according to Global X.

The Southeast Asian nations have profited from considerable growth and a combined market capitalization of $1.75 trillion in 2010, larger than that of both India and Brazil, according to the World Federation of Exchanges.

"We are pleased to provide access to the ASEAN market for US investors," said Bruno del Ama, CEO of Global X Funds, in a press release. "This is one of the most dynamic regions in the world with accelerating consumer demand that should develop a middle class of about 300 million people by 2015."

The top corporate holdings are DBS Group Holdings of Singapore, 6.03%; Singapore Telecom, 5.69%; Oversea-Chinese Banking, or OCBC, of Singapore, 5.61%; United Overseas Bank of Singapore, 5.04%; Astra International of Indonesia, 4.93%; Malayan Banking of Malaysia, 4.48%; Public Bank Fgn of Malaysia, 4.47%; CIMB Group Holdings of Malaysia, 4.47%; Sime Darby Bhd of Malaysia, 4.11%; and Keppel Corporation of Singapore, 3.15%.

Other FTSE indexes currently used by Global X as the basis for ETFs include: the FTSE Colombia 20 Index, the FTSE Nordic 30 Index, the FTSE Norway 30 Index and the FTSE Andean 40 Index.

The Global X FTSE/ASEAN 40 Index ETF has an expense ratio of 0.65% and is distributed by SEI Investments.

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